Join Us

Voice for Equality: Mark Ruffalo

Mark Ruffalo is an American actor, director, producer and screenwriter. He portrayed Stan in "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind", Inspector David Toschi in the 2007 film "Zodiac" and US Marshal Chuck Aule in "Shutter Island". Ruffalo has also appeared as a romantic leading man in "13 Going on 30" (2004), "Just Like Heaven" (2005) and "Rumor Has It" (2005). Learn more here.

Posted on July 2, 2010 by Hollie McKay on foxnews.com:

"The reinstatement of
Proposition 8 in California, a bill which prohibits same-sex couples from
legally marrying, continues to cut through the heart of Hollywood – and Mark
Ruffalo is the latest celebrity to express his passion amid the ongoing fight
forthe freedom to marry.

“'There’s a debate going on
about marriage equality and whether children can be raised in an ‘unconventional’
family and go on to be sexually healthy, viable, productive people – that’s all
used as an argument against the freedom to marry,' Ruffalo recently told Pop Tarts. 'It’s so ridiculous to me.'

"Nonetheless, Ruffalo remains
confident that the push to continue preventing same sex couples from
tying-the-knot, at least in California, is on its last legs – thus prompting
those in opposition to use scare tactics as a last resort.

'“It’s the last dying,
kicking, screaming, caged animal response to a world that is changing, a world
that’s leaving a lot of those old, bigoted, un-accepting views behind. It’s
over,' he continued. 'Those against it are very tricky and they’re using really
dark ways to promote their ideas. But 75 percent of Americans want an appeal on
‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’ They want gays to openly serve in the military. Ten years ago that was probably 30
percent. That number is more reflective of who we are as a nation today than
anything else.'

... “'The more people get to
experience ‘these people’ (gay and lesbian couples) who are not so much unlike
themselves, the more accepting they become,' he said. 'You can’t know somebody
like that and then want to take away something (like marriage) that is so precious
to them.'

And in Ruffalo’s opinion,
perceiving a homosexual person as being any different than somebody who is
straight stems only from what we’re told by others.

“'We live down the street
from a gay couple with a young son, my son goes and plays there and has lunch
there. My son is 8 years old, and not once has he come and asked why his friend
has two poppas,' he added. 'His family is no different than my family – they eat
at the same time, send their kid to school, discipline him and love him the same
way. It’s only the teaching that we give to the child that makes them see those
distinctions.'”